Startech.com PCIPOST PCI Post Diagnostics Test Card

Average customer rating: 3.0

StarTech PCI POST test card
Hard To See Post Code Output, Poor Documentation, Overpriced

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Startech.com PCIPOST PCI Post Diagnostics Test Card

Manufacturer: STARTECH.COM
Product Group: CE
Binding: Electronics
ASIN: B00006B8EZ

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Product Description

The StarTech.com PCI Post Diagnostics Card makes troubleshooting PC problems easy. Simply plug the card into a PCI slot on a malfunctioning PC, and the card reports any problems in the form of error codes on its LED display. These codes are then cross-referenced to the enclosed error code chart to pinpoint the cause of the problem. PC technicians and system builders can save hours of troubleshooting time and prevent non-defective parts from being replaced.

Customer Reviews:

StarTech PCI POST test card.......2006-03-17

This simple PCI board shows the BIOS boot code during the system POST making troubleshooting mainboards and peripherals no guesswork. Each of the POST (self test) stages outputs a hexadecimal code as the test progresses, and when the error is located, the system halts and the code remains on the readout for referencing in the manual.

Hard To See Post Code Output, Poor Documentation, Overpriced.......2006-03-07

This PCI Post Card is barely acceptable. I bought this unit because time was very short for me. I needed to test a dead computer as quickly as possible and Amazon could get this to me quickly.

The card installs in the PCI slot so that the LCD unit mounted on it is upside down and you have to tilt the system unit backwards, hunker yourself down, and generally experience discomfort in order to view the code coming on the card. For the money one pays, it would be better to include a cable with an LCD display on the end which plugs into the card.

The worst point about this POST card is the horrible, misspelled, incomplete documentation. You might as well make sure you have several websites handy which list POST codes and explains their meaning and what action, if any, you should take. The documentation was written by an Asian person who learned English as a second language and learned it poorly at that. The vendor ought to hire a qualified technical writer fluent in English to write the manual. By this I mean a technical writer who natively speaks, reads, and writes English. Poorly done documentation should be unacceptable for technical equipment.

The manual doesn't explain what a POST code of 00 means. It does not list what corrective actions might be appropriate for a given code. I had to Google search for such information. That might be the best thing to do with this type of hardware, I don't know; I just feel that if a manual is included with the hardware it should be well written and decently comprehensive.

In summary, the biggest reason for not buying this card is the miserable documentation. Also, this card should have an LCD attached to a cable which can plug into the card body, making it easy to read the POST codes. This should come standard for the price.

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